Mike Dara, a Filipino-Laotian Canadian actor, was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. Initially, Mike worked as a barber in Toronto, but his passion for performance led him to meet engineers from nearby recording studios, which eventually connected him with Nevon Sinclair, a Grammy-nominated songwriter and vocal coach. This encounter marked the beginning of Mike's music career, as he started performing in small venues across the city, gradually building a local following.
As his music career progressed, Mike felt the need to explore other creative outlets. He attended a few acting classes in downtown Toronto and discovered his love for the craft, ultimately deciding to shift his focus towards building a career in acting. Following his success in a national acting conference, Mike signed with an agent and rapidly ascended to success, landing his first major role as Count Rapula, a quirky rapping vampire, on FX's "What We Do In The Shadows" in 2019.
Since then, Mike has worked on various projects, including Disney's "World's Best" in 2023, "Hudson & Rex" in 2021, and "A Most Dangerous Game" in 2020, where he guest-starred alongside Liam Hemsworth.
In 2021, Mike received awards for "Best Supporting Actor" and "Best Short Film" for his short film "Aces" at the Vancouver International Film Awards, with the film also earning an award for "Best Editing."
In 2023, Mike starred as the leading man in a short film titled "Josephine," which won numerous awards, including "Best Film," "Audience Choice," and "Best Acting Ensemble," at the 48 Hour Film Festival. This achievement led Mike and the rest of the cast and crew to travel to Lisbon, Portugal, where "Josephine" was entered in "The 48 Hour Film Project Filmapalooza" in 2024, earning Mike and his team the "Audience Choice" award.
